Kristinn Sigmundsson (born 1 March 1951) is an Icelandic operatic

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gu ...

. Sigmundsson earned a degree in biology from the

University of Iceland The University of Iceland ( is, Háskóli Íslands ) is a public research university in Reykjavík, Iceland and the country's oldest and largest institution of higher education. Founded in 1911, it has grown steadily from a small civil servants' s ...

. He then worked as a teacher before commencing music studies under Guðmundur Jónsson at the Reykjavik Academy of Singing. Later, he studied at the Hochschule für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna, Austria, under Helene Karusso, Christian Möller and Wolfgang Gabriel. His other teachers have included John Bullock. Sigmundsson began his freelance career in 1992. Sigmundsson has made a number of recordings, including Sarastro in

Arnold Östman Arnold Östman (born December 24, 1939) is a Swedish conductor and music director. Early life Born in Malmö, Sweden, Östman studied art history and musicology at Lund, Paris and Stockholm. As a musician, he concentrated on the piano and the h ...

's version of the ''

Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (German: , ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a '' Singspiel'', a popular form during the time it was written that incl ...

'', and Commendatore in his version of ''

Don Giovanni ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spani ...

''. He also sang the role of Christ in

Frans Brüggen Franciscus ("Frans") Jozef Brüggen (30 October 1934 – 13 August 2014) was a Dutch conductor, recorder player and baroque flautist. Biography Born in Amsterdam, Brüggen was the last of the nine children of August Brüggen, a textile factory o ...

's recordings of Bach's

St John Passion The ''Passio secundum Joannem'' or ''St John Passion'' (german: Johannes-Passion, link=no), BWV 245, is a Passion or oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, the older of the surviving Passions by Bach. It was written during his first year as dire ...

and

St Matthew Passion The ''St Matthew Passion'' (german: Matthäus-Passion, links=-no), BWV 244, is a '' Passion'', a sacred oratorio written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1727 for solo voices, double choir and double orchestra, with libretto by Picander. It sets ...

. Other recordings include a set of opera arias with the

Iceland Symphony Orchestra Sinfóníuhljómsveit Íslands (Iceland Symphony Orchestra) (ISO) is an Icelandic orchestra based in Reykjavík, Iceland. Its primary concert venue is the Harpa Concert Hall. The Iceland Symphony is an autonomous public institution under the aus ...

and Arnold Östman, and Schubert's ''

Schwanengesang ''Schwanengesang (Swan Song)'', 957, is a collection of 14 songs written by Franz Schubert at the end of his life and published posthumously: # Liebesbotschaft (text: Ludwig Rellstab) # Kriegers Ahnung (Rellstab) # Frühlingssehnsucht (Rellsta ...

'' and ''

Winterreise ''Winterreise'' (, ''Winter Journey'') is a song cycle for voice and piano by Franz Schubert ( D. 911, published as Op. 89 in 1828), a setting of 24 poems by German poet Wilhelm Müller. It is the second of Schubert's two song cycles on Müll ...

'' with pianist Jónas Ingimundarson. He has re-recorded ''

'' with pianist

Víkingur Ólafsson Víkingur Ólafsson (born 14 February 1984) is an Icelandic pianist. He has performed with leading orchestras in Europe and America, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Philharmonia Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Gothenburg Symphony Orch ...

in 2012. Sigmundsson is featured on the Pentatone of Corigliano's opera '' The Ghost of Versailles'', taken from live performances in 2015. Sigmundsson is a visiting professor at the ''Listaháskólai Islands'' (Iceland University of the Arts). His honours include the Philadelphia Opera Prize, the ''

Íslensku tónlistarverðlaunin The Icelandic Music Awards ( is, Íslensku tónlistarverðlaunin) are the official annual music awards given in Iceland to commemorate the musical achievements of the year. The award was established in 1993 with an annual rock award given by the ...

'' (Icelandic Music Prize) for 1995, 2010 and 2011, and he ''Útflutningsverðlaun Forseta Íslands'' (Presidential Prize of Iceland) for 2011.

References

External links

Guy Barzilay Artists agency profile of Kristinn Sigmundsson

Listaháskólai Islands (Iceland University of the Arts) Icelandic-language page on Kristinn Sigmundsson

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sigmundsson, Kristinn 1951 births Living people Kristinn Sigmundsson Kristinn Sigmundsson Kristinn Sigmundsson Operatic basses Kristinn Sigmundsson